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Valiha
A kind of zither from the highland plateau of Madagascar, with 21 metal strings (Paddy Bush describes them as "untwisted bicycle brake-cable") arranged lengthwise around a long bamboo tube. Each of the strings has its own individual moveable bridge for tuning, and the instrument is usually tuned diatonically. The sound produced by the valiha is part balalaika, part classical guitar, and part zither. Played by Paddy Bush on the songs Love and Anger and Eat The Music, and by Justin Vali on the songs The Red Shoes and Eat The Music.
Note: the valiha played by Paddy Bush is box-shaped rather than tubular, with strings on two sides, and about four feet in length; this instrument can be seen in the video for Love And Anger.
"It sounds like sunshine -- it has this really happy, bubbly sound."
Kate Bush
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Van Laast, Anthony
A choreographer and dance instructor who trained Kate and worked on the Tour of Life in 1979, Van Laast also appears in the videos for the songs Hammer Horror and The Wedding List, and -- apparently -- as the back of Harry Houdini on the cover of the album The Dreaming.
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Vaughan, Peter
(b. Peter Olm, 1923) A British actor. Vaughan lists among his credits the 1964 film Village Of The Damned (in which he worked with Richard Vernon) and the Terry Gilliam films Time Bandits (as the Ogre) and Brazil (as Mr. Helpmann). Vaughan portrays the ruthless General in the video for the song Experiment IV.
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Vernon, Richard
(b. 7 March 1925) A British actor, director, and producer. Among his notable roles are appearances in the 1960 film Village Of The Damned (alongside Peter Vaughan), A Hard Day's Night (as the Man On Train), and both the radio and television incarnations of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (as Slartibartfast). Vernon portrays the tragic Dr. Jerry Coe in the video for the song Experiment IV.
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Vicious, Sid
(John Beverly, d. 2 February 1979) Bass player with the Sex Pistols following the 1977 departure of Glen Matlock, Sid Vicious is considered by many to be the epitome of the public face of the Punk movement. When Pistols vocalist John Lydon likened Beverly to his pet hamster Sid, the name stuck; the surname "Vicious" came when Sid chain-whipped journalist Nick Kent outside London's 100 Club in 1976. Sid Vicious is named in the song Blow Away.
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Viol
A late 16th Century lute played with a bow, similar to a violin but with a fretted neck and a deeper body. The sound is more soft and delicate than a modern violin. The viol is played by Adam Sceaping on the song The Infant Kiss.
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Violin (instrument)
Kate was obliged to take up the violin at St. Joseph's Senior School in September 1969, as all students were obliged to learn one musical instrument. She later turned to the piano. In one interview, Paddy Bush attributed the choice of violin to their mother Hannah:
"Our mother is Irish and I think Kate maybe felt that there was a slight obligation to learn something to appease the Irish spirit. And somewhere out of my mother's imagination came the idea that Kate should learn the violin. It seems to be a tradition that the violin is forced upon people -- I mean, there are few who take it up of their own volition! And Kate was certainly one of those who took it up only under pressure. So the piano was a way of exploring music in dimensions diametrically opposite to what the violin must have represented -- pure escapism!"
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Violin (song)
A song on the album Never For Ever.
This song is also listed in the Discography section.